Unique Traits of the Werewolf
Making A Werewolf For information on the psychology of writing shapeshifters, Eclipsing, Rage and Hunger, etc. please see our section on Eclipsing and Writing the Werewolf's Wolf. And go here for Communicating in Wereform. Werewolves are the most numerous type of shapeshifter and as far as anyone knows, this is because they were the first of the shapeshifters to somehow manifest, the others showed up later and even now another species will come into existence every so often. It is unknown if they had always been or if it's just something that manifests out of the ether over time. Werecats are the second most numerous - some estimations put them on par with wolves - but they exist mostly in the southern hemisphere or eastern continents as they're generally more prone to warmer climes. Werewolves have dominated more of the northern areas. General Physical Attributes of the Werewolf * All werewolves have digitigrade legs and humanoid features, particularly through the torso and arms, though the face may have traces of human (ie. forward-facing eyes, defined cheekbones, etc.), not always, however. * May or may not have a tail. * Werewolves are the most common type of shapeshifter in the SnB universe, but considering the broad variety of phenotypes found in werewolves, the definition itself is also fairly broad. A more accurate term might be "dogmen" or even "weredog". But while all werewolves are were dogs, not all were dogs are werewolves. Some are distinctly more African wild dog, others are more dingo. However, if they are of a species that, even in appearance, looks to be too far removed from a wolf (such as in the aforementioned examples), then they most likely will be unable to crossbreed. * Generally speaking, however, most werewolves take on distinct aspects of a wolf or large canid, but there are a few that blur the lines. The appearance of a lycanthrope in were form is heavily influenced by their human appearance and sometimes that can translate to some odd shapes. (This fact excludes the more extreme-looking inbred breed of dogs such as Bulldogs, Dalmatians, Poodles, Chihuahua, etc.) Werewolves can also take on the aspects of extinct wolf species, dire wolves being the most common. * The general rule of thumb regarding crossbreeding is if two real life species can crossbreed, then presumably, so can their lycanthropic counterparts. Distinct species of were-dholes, were-African Wild Dogs, were-dingos etc. do exist and will not be able to crossbreed with werewolves. * Werewolves, as well as other species of shapeshifter, can show signs of mythical wolves (or gods/spirits) in them, such a Fenrir and others, but it's anyone's guess if it's actually true or not. There are some old-blood werewolf families who claim to have some lineage to deities but in most cases there is little to no actual proof of this beyond perhaps a wider capacity for certain magic or if they feel their Source of magic comes from a deity associated with their family. Demons fall into this category as well. Please keep these aspects subtle in any physical forms, but you can totally cut loose when designing one's Spirit Form. * Like dogs, werewolves are colorblind when shifted into their Were, Animal, or Berserker Forms. This colorblindness primarily affects colors in the high end of the color spectrum, meaning warm colors like reds, oranges, and yellows may appear as shades of grey or even blues/greens. As a trade off, werewolves have better night vision and are more sensitive to movement. In human form, most werewolves experience a decrease in the range of color they can see in exchange for better low-light vision. Though this is nuanced enough that most do not notice a difference. Those natural born will likely never realize their perception of some colors (particularly shades of red) are less varied than a normal human's. Category:Lore Category:Character Creation